Ralf Reski
Encyclopedia
Ralf Reski is a German
Professor
of Plant Biotechnology
and former Dean
of the Faculty of Biology of the University of Freiburg
. He is also affiliated to the French
École supérieure de biotechnologie Strasbourg
(ESBS) and Senior Fellow at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
.
, Chemistry
and Pedagogy
at the Universities of Giessen
and Hamburg
.
He was awarded his doctorate in Genetics
in 1990 by the University of Hamburg
and received his habilitation
in General Botany
in 1994.
From 1996 until 1999, he was a Heisenberg-Fellow of the German Research Foundation
.
He was appointed Distinguished Professor and entitled Ordinarius at the University of Freiburg
in 1999, where he became Head of the newly established Department of Plant Biotechnology
. From 2001 until 2011, Reski was Director Plant Biotechnology at the Centre for Applied Biosciences (ZAB, University of Freiburg).
Reski is one of the founding Principal Investigator
s (PI) of the Centre for
Biological Signalling Studies (bioss) and of the Spemann
Graduate School of Biology and Medicine (SGBM). Since 2011, he also is Senior Fellow at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
(FRIAS). SGBM, bioss and FRIAS are funded within the German Universities Excellence Initiative
. Furthermore, Reski is a founding PI of the Freiburg Initiative for Systems Biology (FRISYS) funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
Since 2010, Reski is coordinator of a TEMPUS
-project for the improvement of Higher Education
in the field of "environmental management and ecology"
at the Russian Universities in Altai
, Novosibirsk
, Omsk
and Tyumen.
Reski's main area of research with more than 180 scientific publications comprises the genetics
, proteomics
, metabolism
, and cell development
of moss
plants, using the technique of homologous recombination
for creating knockout mosses by gene targeting
in a reverse genetics
approach.
Reski and his coworkers have identified hitherto unknown genes with biotechnological implication for agriculture
and forestry
.
The cultivation of moss cells and their utilization for Molecular Farming
is another main focal point of his research.
In 1998, Reski proposed the moss Physcomitrella patens
as a model plant in biological research. Since then, he has contributed significantly towards mosses becoming a model plant in biological research on a worldwide scale. In 2004, Reski and colleagues from the United States, the United Kingdom
and Japan
successfully proposed the genome
of Physcomitrella patens for complete sequencing at the Joint Genome Institute
(JGI), a facility of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
. The genome was released in December 2007, with the bioinformatic work spearheaded by Reski´s group and financed by the German National Science Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
DFG).
To date, the Freiburg Chair of Plant Biotechnology hosts an online database of Physcomitrella patens comprising the genomic sequence, annotated gene models and supplemental information.
Due to its scientific and economic importance, the genome of Physcomitrella patens has been chosen as a “flagship plant genome” by the DOE JGI in 2010.
Also in 1998, Reski and coworkers generated a knockout moss by deleting
an ftsZ
gene and thus identified the first gene essential in the division of an organelle in any eukaryote.
Based on the results of further research on the ftsZ-gene family, Ralf Reski coined the term "plastoskeleton", analogous to the term "cytoskeleton
", in 2000 and presented a new concept in cell biology
of how chloroplast
s, the green cell organelle
s of plants, change shape and divide.
In 1999, the chemical company BASF
invested more than 30 Mio. DM in a four year cooperation project with Reski to identify new genes which may be able to make crop plants more resistant to drought
, cold
and attack by pests. Plants with improved nutritional
value (vitamin
s or polyunsaturated fatty acid
s) have also been in the research focus of their collaboration.
In the same year, Reski invented the moss bioreactor
and founded “greenovation Biotech GmbH”, a biotechnology company utilizing moss bioreactors for the production of pharmaceuticals. In 2011, Reski and coworkers produced recombinant, biologically active human factor H
in a moss bioreactor.
In 2010, Reski established the International Moss Stock Center
(IMSC), which stores and freely distributes moss strains, transgenics and ecotype
s. The IMSC assigns accession numbers that can be used in scientific publications to facilitate identification and availability of the respective samples.
Also in 2010, Reski and colleagues discovered a new mechanism of gene regulation; the epigenetic
gene silencing
by microRNAs
.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Plant Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
and former Dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
of the Faculty of Biology of the University of Freiburg
University of Freiburg
The University of Freiburg , sometimes referred to in English as the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.The university was founded in 1457 by the Habsburg dynasty as the...
. He is also affiliated to the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
École supérieure de biotechnologie Strasbourg
École supérieure de biotechnologie Strasbourg
The French École supérieure de biotechnologie Strasbourg is a scientific college situated in Illkirch . It was founded in 1982 as an autonomous institute within the University of Strasbourg and offers an international biotechnology program.In the year of 1988 the ESBS signed a convention on...
(ESBS) and Senior Fellow at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies was founded at the University of Freiburg in Freiburg, Germany, in 2008. The institute was initially part of the university's proposal for funding in the Excellence Initiative in 2007, an initiative by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research...
.
Biography
Ralf Reski studied BiologyBiology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, Chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
and Pedagogy
Pedagogy
Pedagogy is the study of being a teacher or the process of teaching. The term generally refers to strategies of instruction, or a style of instruction....
at the Universities of Giessen
University of Giessen
The University of Giessen is officially called the Justus Liebig University Giessen after its most famous faculty member, Justus von Liebig, the founder of modern agricultural chemistry and inventor of artificial fertiliser.-History:The University of Gießen is among the oldest institutions of...
and Hamburg
University of Hamburg
The University of Hamburg is a university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by Wilhelm Stern and others. It grew out of the previous Allgemeines Vorlesungswesen and the Kolonialinstitut as well as the Akademisches Gymnasium. There are around 38,000 students as of the start of...
.
He was awarded his doctorate in Genetics
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
in 1990 by the University of Hamburg
University of Hamburg
The University of Hamburg is a university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by Wilhelm Stern and others. It grew out of the previous Allgemeines Vorlesungswesen and the Kolonialinstitut as well as the Akademisches Gymnasium. There are around 38,000 students as of the start of...
and received his habilitation
Habilitation
Habilitation is the highest academic qualification a scholar can achieve by his or her own pursuit in several European and Asian countries. Earned after obtaining a research doctorate, such as a PhD, habilitation requires the candidate to write a professorial thesis based on independent...
in General Botany
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
in 1994.
From 1996 until 1999, he was a Heisenberg-Fellow of the German Research Foundation
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft is an important German research funding organization and the largest such organization in Europe.-Function:...
.
He was appointed Distinguished Professor and entitled Ordinarius at the University of Freiburg
University of Freiburg
The University of Freiburg , sometimes referred to in English as the Albert Ludwig University of Freiburg, is a public research university located in Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany.The university was founded in 1457 by the Habsburg dynasty as the...
in 1999, where he became Head of the newly established Department of Plant Biotechnology
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
. From 2001 until 2011, Reski was Director Plant Biotechnology at the Centre for Applied Biosciences (ZAB, University of Freiburg).
Reski is one of the founding Principal Investigator
Principal investigator
A principal investigator is the lead scientist or engineer for a particular well-defined science project, such as a laboratory study or clinical trial....
s (PI) of the Centre for
Biological Signalling Studies (bioss) and of the Spemann
Hans Spemann
Hans Spemann was a German embryologist who was awarded a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1935 for his discovery of the effect now known as embryonic induction, an influence, exercised by various parts of the embryo, that directs the development of groups of cells into particular tissues...
Graduate School of Biology and Medicine (SGBM). Since 2011, he also is Senior Fellow at the Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies
Freiburg Institute for Advanced Studies was founded at the University of Freiburg in Freiburg, Germany, in 2008. The institute was initially part of the university's proposal for funding in the Excellence Initiative in 2007, an initiative by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research...
(FRIAS). SGBM, bioss and FRIAS are funded within the German Universities Excellence Initiative
German Universities Excellence Initiative
The Excellence Initiative of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the German Research Foundation aims to promote cutting-edge research and to create outstanding conditions for young scientists at universities, to deepen cooperation between disciplines and institutions, to...
. Furthermore, Reski is a founding PI of the Freiburg Initiative for Systems Biology (FRISYS) funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
Since 2010, Reski is coordinator of a TEMPUS
TEMPUS
The TEMPUS programme encourages institutions in the EU Member States and partner countries to engage in structured cooperation through the establishment of "consortia". The "consortia" implement Joint European Projects with a clear set of objectives. Such projects may receive financial aid for...
-project for the improvement of Higher Education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in the field of "environmental management and ecology"
at the Russian Universities in Altai
Altai State University
Altai State University, founded in 1973, is a university in Barnaul, Russia.Altai State University has the following departments: Biology; Geography; Journalism; Arts; History; Mathematics; Education; Political Science; Psychology; Sociology; Engineering; Philology; Chemistry; Economics,...
, Novosibirsk
Novosibirsk State University
Novosibirsk State University was founded in May 1959 in the USSR by Soviet academicians Mikhail Alekseevich Lavrentiev, Sergei Lvovich Sobolev and Sergey Alekseyevich Khristianovich in a program of establishing a Siberian branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences...
, Omsk
Omsk State Pedagogical University
-External links:*...
and Tyumen.
Research
Genetics
Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of genes, heredity, and variation in living organisms....
, proteomics
Proteomics
Proteomics is the large-scale study of proteins, particularly their structures and functions. Proteins are vital parts of living organisms, as they are the main components of the physiological metabolic pathways of cells. The term "proteomics" was first coined in 1997 to make an analogy with...
, metabolism
Metabolism
Metabolism is the set of chemical reactions that happen in the cells of living organisms to sustain life. These processes allow organisms to grow and reproduce, maintain their structures, and respond to their environments. Metabolism is usually divided into two categories...
, and cell development
Cellular differentiation
In developmental biology, cellular differentiation is the process by which a less specialized cell becomes a more specialized cell type. Differentiation occurs numerous times during the development of a multicellular organism as the organism changes from a simple zygote to a complex system of...
of moss
Moss
Mosses are small, soft plants that are typically 1–10 cm tall, though some species are much larger. They commonly grow close together in clumps or mats in damp or shady locations. They do not have flowers or seeds, and their simple leaves cover the thin wiry stems...
plants, using the technique of homologous recombination
Homologous recombination
Homologous recombination is a type of genetic recombination in which nucleotide sequences are exchanged between two similar or identical molecules of DNA. It is most widely used by cells to accurately repair harmful breaks that occur on both strands of DNA, known as double-strand breaks...
for creating knockout mosses by gene targeting
Gene targeting
Gene targeting is a genetic technique that uses homologous recombination to change an endogenous gene. The method can be used to delete a gene, remove exons, add a gene, and introduce point mutations. Gene targeting can be permanent or conditional...
in a reverse genetics
Reverse genetics
Reverse genetics is an approach to discovering the function of a gene by analyzing the phenotypic effects of specific gene sequences obtained by DNA sequencing. This investigative process proceeds in the opposite direction of so-called forward genetic screens of classical genetics...
approach.
Reski and his coworkers have identified hitherto unknown genes with biotechnological implication for agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
and forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
.
The cultivation of moss cells and their utilization for Molecular Farming
Molecular farming
Molecular farming is the use of genetically engineered crops to produce compounds with therapeutic value. These crops will become biological factories used to generate drugs and other difficult or expensive products...
is another main focal point of his research.
In 1998, Reski proposed the moss Physcomitrella patens
Physcomitrella patens
Physcomitrella patens is a moss used as a model organism for studies on plant evolution, development and physiology.-Model organism:...
as a model plant in biological research. Since then, he has contributed significantly towards mosses becoming a model plant in biological research on a worldwide scale. In 2004, Reski and colleagues from the United States, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
successfully proposed the genome
Genome
In modern molecular biology and genetics, the genome is the entirety of an organism's hereditary information. It is encoded either in DNA or, for many types of virus, in RNA. The genome includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of the DNA/RNA....
of Physcomitrella patens for complete sequencing at the Joint Genome Institute
Joint Genome Institute
The U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute was created in 1997 to unite the expertise and resources in genome mapping, DNA sequencing, technology development, and information sciences pioneered at the DOE genome centers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory , Lawrence Livermore...
(JGI), a facility of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
. The genome was released in December 2007, with the bioinformatic work spearheaded by Reski´s group and financed by the German National Science Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft is an important German research funding organization and the largest such organization in Europe.-Function:...
DFG).
To date, the Freiburg Chair of Plant Biotechnology hosts an online database of Physcomitrella patens comprising the genomic sequence, annotated gene models and supplemental information.
Due to its scientific and economic importance, the genome of Physcomitrella patens has been chosen as a “flagship plant genome” by the DOE JGI in 2010.
Also in 1998, Reski and coworkers generated a knockout moss by deleting
Gene knockout
A gene knockout is a genetic technique in which one of an organism's genes is made inoperative . Also known as knockout organisms or simply knockouts, they are used in learning about a gene that has been sequenced, but which has an unknown or incompletely known function...
an ftsZ
FtsZ
FtsZ is a protein encoded by the ftsZ gene that assembles into a ring at the future site of the septum of bacterial cell division. This is a prokaryotic homologue to the eukaryotic protein tubulin. FtsZ has been named after "Filamenting temperature-sensitive mutant Z". The hypothesis was that cell...
gene and thus identified the first gene essential in the division of an organelle in any eukaryote.
Based on the results of further research on the ftsZ-gene family, Ralf Reski coined the term "plastoskeleton", analogous to the term "cytoskeleton
Cytoskeleton
The cytoskeleton is a cellular "scaffolding" or "skeleton" contained within a cell's cytoplasm and is made out of protein. The cytoskeleton is present in all cells; it was once thought to be unique to eukaryotes, but recent research has identified the prokaryotic cytoskeleton...
", in 2000 and presented a new concept in cell biology
Cell biology
Cell biology is a scientific discipline that studies cells – their physiological properties, their structure, the organelles they contain, interactions with their environment, their life cycle, division and death. This is done both on a microscopic and molecular level...
of how chloroplast
Chloroplast
Chloroplasts are organelles found in plant cells and other eukaryotic organisms that conduct photosynthesis. Chloroplasts capture light energy to conserve free energy in the form of ATP and reduce NADP to NADPH through a complex set of processes called photosynthesis.Chloroplasts are green...
s, the green cell organelle
Organelle
In cell biology, an organelle is a specialized subunit within a cell that has a specific function, and is usually separately enclosed within its own lipid bilayer....
s of plants, change shape and divide.
In 1999, the chemical company BASF
BASF
BASF SE is the largest chemical company in the world and is headquartered in Germany. BASF originally stood for Badische Anilin- und Soda-Fabrik . Today, the four letters are a registered trademark and the company is listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and Zurich Stock...
invested more than 30 Mio. DM in a four year cooperation project with Reski to identify new genes which may be able to make crop plants more resistant to drought
Drought
A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation. It can have a substantial impact on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region...
, cold
Cold
Cold describes the condition of low temperature.Cold may also refer to:*Common cold, a contagious viral infectious disease of the upper respiratory system*Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease...
and attack by pests. Plants with improved nutritional
Nutrition
Nutrition is the provision, to cells and organisms, of the materials necessary to support life. Many common health problems can be prevented or alleviated with a healthy diet....
value (vitamin
Vitamin
A vitamin is an organic compound required as a nutrient in tiny amounts by an organism. In other words, an organic chemical compound is called a vitamin when it cannot be synthesized in sufficient quantities by an organism, and must be obtained from the diet. Thus, the term is conditional both on...
s or polyunsaturated fatty acid
Fatty acid
In chemistry, especially biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with a long unbranched aliphatic tail , which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have a chain of an even number of carbon atoms, from 4 to 28. Fatty acids are usually derived from...
s) have also been in the research focus of their collaboration.
In the same year, Reski invented the moss bioreactor
Moss bioreactor
thumb|350px|Moss bioreactor with [[Physcomitrella patens]]A moss bioreactor is a photobioreactor used for the cultivation and propagation of mosses...
and founded “greenovation Biotech GmbH”, a biotechnology company utilizing moss bioreactors for the production of pharmaceuticals. In 2011, Reski and coworkers produced recombinant, biologically active human factor H
Factor H
Factor H is a member of the regulators of complement activation family and is a complement control protein. It is a large , soluble glycoprotein that circulates in human plasma...
in a moss bioreactor.
In 2010, Reski established the International Moss Stock Center
International Moss Stock Center
The International Moss Stock Center , located at the Albert-Ludwigs-University of Freiburg, is an international resource center which is specialized in collecting, preserving and distributing moss plants of a high value of scientific research.-Moss collection:The moss collection of the IMSC...
(IMSC), which stores and freely distributes moss strains, transgenics and ecotype
Ecotype
In evolutionary ecology, an ecotype,Greek: οίκος = home and τύπος = type, coined by Göte Turesson in 1922 sometimes called ecospecies, describes a genetically distinct geographic variety, population or race within species , which is adapted to specific environmental conditions.Typically, ecotypes...
s. The IMSC assigns accession numbers that can be used in scientific publications to facilitate identification and availability of the respective samples.
Also in 2010, Reski and colleagues discovered a new mechanism of gene regulation; the epigenetic
Epigenetics
In biology, and specifically genetics, epigenetics is the study of heritable changes in gene expression or cellular phenotype caused by mechanisms other than changes in the underlying DNA sequence – hence the name epi- -genetics...
gene silencing
Gene silencing
Gene silencing is a general term describing epigenetic processes of gene regulation. The term gene silencing is generally used to describe the "switching off" of a gene by a mechanism other than genetic modification...
by microRNAs
Micro RNA
A microRNA is a short ribonucleic acid molecule found in eukaryotic cells. A microRNA molecule has very few nucleotides compared with other RNAs....
.
Scientific board memberships
- 2003 – to date Supervisory BoardSupervisory boardA supervisory board or supervisory committee, often called board of directors, is a group of individuals chosen by the stockholders of a company to promote their interests through the governance of the company and to hire and supervise the executive directors and CEO.Corporate governance varies...
of BioPro GmbH , an enterprise of the federal stateStates of GermanyGermany is made up of sixteen which are partly sovereign constituent states of the Federal Republic of Germany. Land literally translates as "country", and constitutionally speaking, they are constituent countries...
of Baden-WürttembergBaden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants... - 2004 – to date Advisory boardAdvisory boardAn advisory board is a body that advises the board of directors and management of a corporation but does not have authority to vote on corporate matters, nor a legal fiduciary responsibility...
BMBF program Risk assessment in Plant Biotechnology - 2007 – 2010 Think tankThink tankA think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
on InnovationInnovationInnovation is the creation of better or more effective products, processes, technologies, or ideas that are accepted by markets, governments, and society...
PolicyPolicyA policy is typically described as a principle or rule to guide decisions and achieve rational outcome. The term is not normally used to denote what is actually done, this is normally referred to as either procedure or protocol...
(German Innovationsrat) headed by Günther OettingerGünther OettingerGünther Hermann Oettinger is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union . He became European Commissioner for Energy in the European Commission on 10 February 2010 and is affiliated with the European People's Party...
, former Minister-PresidentMinister-PresidentA minister-president is the head of government in a number of European countries or subnational governments, in which a parliamentary or semi-presidential system of government prevails, who presides over the council of ministers...
of Baden-Württemberg and now European CommissionerEuropean CommissionerA European Commissioner is a member of the 27-member European Commission. Each Member within the college holds a specific portfolio and are led by the President of the European Commission... - 2008 – to date elected President of Deutsches Nationalkomitee BiologieDeutsches Nationalkomitee BiologieThe Deutsches Nationalkomitee Biologie is a scientific non-profit and non-governmental organisation which represents German biologists on an international level. It is embedded in an international hierarchy...
(DNK, German National Committee of IUBSIUBSThe International Union of Biological Sciences is a non-profit organization and non-governmental organization, founded in 1919, that promotes the biological sciences internationally...
and IUMSInternational Union of Microbiological SocietiesThe Internation Union of Microbiological Societies or IUMS, founded in 1927 as the International Society of Microbiology, is now one of 27 Scientific Unions of the International Council of Science ....
within ICSU) - 2008 – to date Advisory board of German Life Sciences Association (Verband Biologie, Biowissenschaften und Biomedizin in Deutschland e.V., VBIO)
- 2009 – to date elected Executive committee Member of the IUBSIUBSThe International Union of Biological Sciences is a non-profit organization and non-governmental organization, founded in 1919, that promotes the biological sciences internationally...
Editorial board memberships of scientific journals
- 2002 - to date Plant Cell Reports
- 2004 - 2006 Plant Biology (Guest-Editor)
- 2008 - to date Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology
- 2009 – to date Plant Cell Reports, Editor-in-Chief
- 2010 - to date Biology International
External links
News articles
- "Moss bioreactors do not smell" - Interview with Professor Ralf Reski
- The first decoded moss genome: From all-conquering country dweller to producer of medicines
- An inconspicuous relative
- Protein communicates information about stress
- The conquest of land by plants
- Medicine from Moss: Bioreactor Technique May Offer Hope to People With Age-Related Blindness